Grey Skies
by airamamba
Summary: Elizabeth is a girl leading a careless life with her sister Christine. But life isn't a fairy tale and that is something both of them will have to face.
1. The Veil Of The Future

Yes, I know I have a few stories running, but I'm in a complete hole on what to do next in them. Give me some more time, please. I ask my readers to treat this as an entertainment in the meanwhile. Maybe entertainment isn't the right word, but you know what I mean. I promise I'll continue "The Devil And The Slave Girl" and "The Flames Of War" as soon as I'll feel satisfied with the idea I'll get for the next chapter of any of them.

_**xxx**_

**Disclaimer: **I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth and Christine are mine.

* * *

_**xxx Grey Skies xxx**_

_**I. The Veil Of The Future**_

It was a beautiful, warm, summer afternoon. An afternoon like many others in June. The sun was near to dive beneath the horizon as a delicate wind gently moved the tall grass in the green meadow. A few girls – none older than fifteen - were running through the grass, playing. But one wasn't running with them, she slowly followed the laughing group. She had light brown, curly hair and a pale complexion that combined with her delicate face features, made her look a bit ghostly.

"Elizabeth, please, let's go home." She said to her sister that was with the group of laughing girls. "Mother forbade us to stay out after sunset." She continued, following her sister.

"Oh, Christine, why must you obey everything that mother says? You act worse than a slave. Have some fun in life." Elizabeth spoke smiling as she turned away from the rest of the girls. Her features were slightly sharper than her sister's and her skin had a more humane color. She also had brown hair like Christine, only they were darker and straight instead of curly.

"You know we should do what our mother says. It's better that way. We should go back." Christine tried to persuade her sister into returning home.

"Then you go back. I have only one life to live and I don't intend to spend it on listening to our mother's orders." Christine tried to say something, but before she could Elizabeth cut her off. "And that's the end of this discussion."

Out of the two Elizabeth was the one with more spine, though she was a lot more concentrated on enjoying herself than obeying rules and thinking about true life. Christine was a lot more serious than her sister, but also, a lot more meek.

"Liz! Look!" One of the girls pulled Elizabeth from her sister and pointed to an old woman walking across the meadow, heading in their direction. "You see that Liz? A Gypsy. Maybe she'll tell us our future." The girl said excited.

"You really believe in fortune telling?" Elizabeth asked, arching an eyebrow.

"No, but I'm still curious what she'll say. Besides, it's harmless. Come on." The girl replied with a smile.

"I guess you're right, it can't hurt to ask out of curiosity." Elizabeth said and started walking towards the old woman who was already talking with the other girls, who obviously got the idea of asking about their future also.

"Don't do it, Elizabeth, it's a sin." Christine said, deadly serious.

"Oh stop it. You're boring!" Elizabeth replied annoyed. Even if she thought fortune telling as rubbish, she would go and ask that old Gypsy woman about her future only to anger her sister. As she came closer to the other girls, she saw that after hearing their fortune every one of them gave the woman one pence. From what she heard every of her friends had a future before herself that included a husband, children and a nice house surrounded by fields. Elizabeth wanted to laugh, knowing that she'll hear the same story.

"I suppose you want to hear your fortune also." The old woman said to Elizabeth when she finished with the other girls. "It costs one pence." The woman said blankly.

"Alright." Elizabeth agreed.

"Give me your right hand." The old Gypsy took Elizabeth's hand and started looking at her open palm. As the woman gazed at her hand, Elizabeth observed her face. The woman must've been quite attractive once judging by her face features, but her beauty was marred by time and wrinkles that now covered her face. Suddenly the woman sighed and closed Elizabeth's palm. "I'll tell you this much, child. Laugh as much as you can, as you won't have too many reasons for it in the future." The old woman's voice was hinted with pity, pity that Elizabeth sensed was meant for her.

"Wait, what did you mean by that I won't have many reasons for laughing in the future?" Elizabeth stopped the woman as she started to walk away.

"Ask yourself if you really want to know." The Gypsy said.

"I want to know." Elizabeth firmly stated.

"Very well. But remember my words and don't treat this like a joke." The old woman said and returned to Elizabeth. She took her hand once more in hers and looked at her open palm. "As I said, laugh as much as you can, as in your future there will be more tears than happiness. A great burden will be placed on your shoulders. You will make many hard decisions and sacrifices in you life."

"What about a future home, a family?" Elizabeth asked.

"You will never marry nor have children." The woman replied.

"What about love? Will I fall in love?" Another question from the young girl.

"Oh yes, you will fall in love, but that feeling will bring you more pain than anything else."

"Do you know in who I'll fall in love with?" The old woman raised her head and looked straight into Elizabeth's eyes.

"The Devil." She said shortly and dropped the girl's hand. Elizabeth somehow couldn't believe what the woman was saying, but what she told her, was so different from what she told her friends. She automatically reached into the pocket in her dress and took out the one pence for the Gypsy. When she was about to give it to her, the old woman stopped her. "No, keep it. You'll need it in the future more than I need it now." The Gypsy said and started to walk away. Elizabeth threw a glance at her friends and then turned into the old woman's direction, but she was nowhere in sight.

* * *

**If you like it and want me to continue, PLEASE REVIEW. If you think it is crap review and tell me.**

**Oh, and by the way, for the ones that are wondering, Tavington appears in the second chapter.**


	2. A Nightmare Come True

**Disclaimer: **I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth and Christine are mine.

**Libertiney**, **Scorpian, Bizziebee** - Thanks for the reviews, I'm glad that you like it.

* * *

_**II. A Nightmare Come True**_

"Do you know in who I'll fall in love with?" The old woman raised her head and looked straight into Elizabeth's eyes.

"The Devil." She said shortly and dropped the girl's hand. Elizabeth somehow couldn't believe what the woman was saying, but what she told her, was so different from what she told her friends. She automatically reached into the pocket in her dress and took out the one pence for the Gypsy. When she was about to give it to her, the old woman stopped her. "No, keep it. You'll need it in the future more than I need it now." The Gypsy said and started to walk away. Elizabeth threw a glance at her friends and then turned into the old woman's direction, but she was nowhere in sight.

_**XoXoXoX**_

_**One year later**_

"We're running out of money." Elizabeth said to her sister as she sat on their bed in the small room they rented.

About a half a year earlier the plantation where they lived with their mother was burned down by the redcoats as their family belonged to the supporters of the Continentals. It was a miracle that they survived as they weren't home on that day. After that Elizabeth and her sister landed on the street with practically nothing except for the clothes on their backs and the money Elizabeth got for her necklace – a small silver cross on a silver chain. She and her sister got each one of those, but Christine refused to sell hers, as she said it was a gift from their mother and a symbol of their faith. Elizabeth couldn't help but to think: 'We'll see what your faith will give you when you'll starve to death.' It was truly a fact, that they now lived on the brink of starvation as most of their money went on the scruffy looking room.

As surprising it might seem, it was Elizabeth who took a step into the rough world as an adult responsible for her twin sister, that kept her naivety. In some moments she was angry that she had to be responsible for both of them, overcoming all the obstacles, while Christine though the changes in their life, still remained in the warm blanket representing the world of a normal, almost sixteen year old girl. Still, at most times she thought that it's good that at least one of them can remain in the lacking of true responsibilities world. When Christine was kept safe in it, Elizabeth looked for newer and newer ways of finding money for them.

She knew that it would be a lot easier for them if she was able to find work as a mere maid, but nowadays people were too scared to hire strangers that 'came from the street'. At this time, every house was on one of the two sides – it was a house of Loyalists or a house of supporters of the Continentals. But nomather from the side they were on, they all feared one thing – spies that might be hired in their houses and that would pass on information about the house owners to the opposite side.

This situation made Elizabeth look for other ways of getting money than earning them. She stole money from people's pockets when in a crowd, she stole food when shopkeepers weren't looking. She never told her sister about it, not wanting to listen to another of Christine's lectures about sins and other things. Elizabeth stopped having problems with her conscience on the matter a long time ago. First every time she stole money she got thoughts that those might be the last their former owner had and now he would land on the street. But she directed her thoughts on another track: these were hard times for everyone, it's me or him/her. But as more she thought that way, the more she was bothered by another thing, the fear of being caught. At present that scared her the most.

She wasn't the only thief in the crowd. Their number grew and with that grew the number of thefts. This made the penalties for stealing grow higher, until Elizabeth started wondering what was worse – hunger death or the penalty for thievery.

"You'll think of something as usual, Elizabeth." Christine answered her sister's blank statement with a smile. Elizabeth sighed sadly and walked up to the only window that was in their small room. The place where they rented it, was a small house that lay on the grounds belonging to the mansion, that Fort Carolina was built around. It was surprising that the woman owning the small house – some relative to the owners of the mansion – wasn't driven out of it. Now the woman rented rooms, and her tenants were now mostly whores who found it more than convenient to be close to an entire encampment of the British army including both infantry and cavalry. The motive why Elizabeth chose to live here instead of somewhere else, was that living near a fort, must've been now the safest place in South Carolina. It didn't matter to her that they were the ones that killed her mother and burned their home, causing the situation she was now in. Now, she was set on survival and she was indifferent to the 'cause' of the British or the 'cause' of the Continentals.

"Yes, well, at least I'll try." Oh how Elizabeth envied her sister's naivety. She watched the camp and the mansion from the window as a thought kept repeating itself in her head, a thought of the most probably last way that was left to get money for her and her sister. Elizabeth knew that this would ruin her already not so wonderful reputation to the end, but honestly, did she have another choice? She had been thinking about this for some time now and at present it seemed that all alternatives except for dying of hunger on the street had ended. She was now forced to sell the last thing she owned – herself. She would have to sell her body over and over again if she wanted to survive.

The next few nights Elizabeth spent tossing and turning in her and her sister's small bed. She couldn't sleep as she desperately looked for other ways, but she knew there were none and they had less and less money with every day. When it finally got to her, that her mental search for alternatives was fruitless and would remain that way, she started looking for a way to tell her sister what she planned to do. She felt inside that she shouldn't tell her and that she should protect her from that kind of truth, concerning what Christine thought. But still, Elizabeth didn't want to be forced to watch her every word as she did till now, when she stole money. She didn't want to hide from her sister like an escaped convict that was forced to live in one house with a jail guard that just by accident forgot his face, but would recognize him immediately if a single wrongly chosen word would slip from the fugitives mouth.

On one day Elizabeth gathered all the bravery she had in herself and decided to tell her sister about the situation. Christine's reaction to what she planned was exactly the way she expected.

"You can't do that, Elizabeth. It's a sin. Besides, don't you remember what mother said about keeping our virginity until our wedding nights?" Christine replied to what her sister had just told her. Yes, Elizabeth did remember, but it was always obvious which one of them listened to their mother more about life and which one was more religious. Their dead mother tried to make good Christians out of them both, but managed to do it only with Christine. Elizabeth always more ignored what her mother said, than listened to it. Now she thanked for the way she acted then, because at present her past lack of attention allowed her to feel less guilty while using all possible methods of keeping her and her sister alive. "Surely there must be some other way than breaking the promise we gave to our mother about staying pure till our wedding day." This time Elizabeth had enough of her sister's babbling about religion, sins and their mother.

"No, damn it! There is no other way!" Elizabeth snapped at Christine. "I went through it a thousand times in my head, but there is no other way! And as for sins, my dear, it's thank to them you're still alive, you have a roof above your head and food to eat! Thanks to your so hated 'sins' you're still able to live in that dream world of a child and not lift a finger to help me in anything!" Elizabeth shouted so loud that Christine backed away from her against the wall. "Your naivety makes me sick! I made a mistake by trying to keep you safe from the world instead of breaking the truth to you at the beginning! All I get from you for everything I do is criticism! If you weren't my sister I would've thrown you out on the street a long time ago, concerning that I'm the one who takes care of us! But believe me, although you're my sister the perspective of hurting you is becoming more tempting with every day! Grow up Christine, the world is a lot dirtier and stinking place than you ever could imagine in your little, naive head!" Elizabeth sat down on the bed and buried her face in her hands. "You think I wouldn't want there to be another way?" Her voice was a lot calmer now. "But understand, please understand there is no other option except hunger death on the street, and that's not something I want to experience." Christine just kept looking at her sister, to afraid to come near her.

On the next day Elizabeth took a bath and tried to put her hair in the most tolerable hairstyle she was able to. She tried to look the best she could, knowing that when looking like a November night she won't be able to get anyone's attention. It was sunset when she left her and her sister's room. Christine didn't say a word when Elizabeth left.

To tell the truth, Elizabeth had no idea how she was going to go through this. Because of the way her mother was, the girl's knowledge of 'that' part of life was hardly basic. She had never even kissed in her life – not that Elizabeth didn't want to, but there simply never was an occasion. She knew that when it would start, it would pass through somehow. But how to start? She knew that if she wanted to actually earn something, she would have to try with the higher ranked officers, so she decided to go to the mansion. Still, when she was already standing before it, she had no idea what to do next.

Elizabeth was standing with her back to the gate, so she didn't notice when it opened. She then heard the sound of a horse galloping into the fort. She turned her head to see who just rode in. In that moment her eyes fell onto the commander of the Green Dragoons, Colonel William Tavington.

* * *

**If you like it and want me to continue, PLEASE REVIEW. If you think it is crap review and tell me. Constructive criticism would be appreciated.**


	3. The First Night Of Her Life

**SassyBrunette, Bizziebee, Ariana3000, DeceptiveKindness: **Thank you for the reviews, I'm glad that you like the story.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth and Christine are mine.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

_**III. The First Night Of Her Life**_

Elizabeth saw him dismount and throw the reins into the hands of some soldier that came to take the horse away. Then, she mentally let out a sad laugh as she thought: 'If you're to sell yourself, Liz, than at least let him be handsome.' The girl knew what reputation the Colonel had and that he wouldn't be exactly the best choice. She heard a few times through the wall in her and her sister's room, that he was as brutal in bed as he was on the battlefield. But at the moment Elizabeth didn't care, now the most important thing for her was, that she at least wouldn't feel disgusted when touched by him.

Still, the biggest problem remained, what was she to do now? Elizabeth knew, that she would have to walk up to him, but what to say? And how to say it? She knew that if she wanted to achieve something, she would have to talk to him now, before he entered the mansion. She started walking in his direction.

"Colonel…" Elizabeth started when she caught up with him just before the stone steps leading to the entrance doors. He stopped and slowly turned to her. Elizabeth had never seen him from this close before. He was a lot more handsome than she thought earlier. He was much taller than she was, his face features were sharp and proud, creating an aristocratic air about him. But the thing that concentrated Elizabeth's attention, were his eyes. Grey as glass, ice cold. There was not a single emotion in them, as if they belonged to a dead statue. Although Elizabeth couldn't deny how attractive he was, she clearly sensed that there was something unusual about him, something demonic. Then she thought, that '_devilishly'_ handsome would be the perfect way to describe him.

"What?" Elizabeth awoke from her thoughts when she heard his voice, immediately remembering what was waiting ahead of her. Again, the problem of what to say appeared. She tried to quickly think of something that would be the best to say in this situation. "What do you want?" Tavington asked again, annoyed by the girl's staring.

"Um… I…" Elizabeth fumbled with her words, trying to say something. "I was wondering… if… if you might want… company for tonight." She felt a bit relieved, when she finally said it. She saw a smirk paint itself on the Colonel's lips. She thought that it somehow looked like the smile of a cat. It had something strange, mysterious in it. Mysterious and definitely not positive.

"A whore, I should've known." He said with amusement. Elizabeth couldn't stop herself from turning her face away in shame. Tavington noticed this. He also saw that when she turned her face away, the setting sun made her features more visible than a second ago. She was very young, judging by her appearance. He placed his leather clad fingers under her chin and turned her face back to him. "Tell me, how old are you?" Elizabeth pulled her face away from his hand.

"Sixteen… almost. What difference does it make?" Elizabeth said bitterly. 'So, she wasn't even sixteen.' Tavington thought. That fact wasn't shocking for him as for most it would be. He had seen even younger, thirteen year old prostitutes in his life, but never was desperate enough to have anything to do with them. Still, this girl wasn't thirteen, she was almost sixteen and from the physical point of view, she definitely wasn't a child anymore. He had to admit, she was pretty and he wouldn't mind having her in his bed. He scanned her body, wondering was there anything as pretty as her face under the simple, brown dress she wore.

The way he looked at her, made Elizabeth feel like she was standing in the middle of the fort naked. He then took a step closer to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. He started sliding it down her body until he reached her backside and lightly squeezed it. This made Elizabeth jump, as she was completely unprepared for it, even though what she planned for tonight. When she moved her gaze back to the Colonel, the look on his face clearly told her, that he had foreseen her reaction.

"You aren't exactly a professional, are you?" He said smirking. Elizabeth didn't know what to say, but she knew, that if she wanted to see this through, she had to prepare herself, that he will touch her a lot more than that. The fact that she never had much to do with men, made the situation a lot worse. Her silence only made Tavington's smirk widen. "You're a virgin, aren't you?"

"Yes." Elizabeth replied shortly, turning her face away from him. The way he asked the question a moment ago, made her feel like he was toying with her. 'Of course he is, stupid. You're nothing more than amusing for him. You're pitiful in what you're doing now.' Elizabeth scowled herself. She then felt his thumb sliding over her lips before he moved his hand to the back of her neck. He pulled her closer to himself and moved his face to hers. Elizabeth automatically closed her eyes and threw her head back, as she expected him to kiss her. But the kiss never came. When she opened her eyes, she saw a cruel smirk on the Colonel's lips.

"Have you ever even kissed before, girl?" He had to admit, that watching her reactions was quite amusing. She'll definitely provide him entertainment tonight.

Elizabeth couldn't stand this anymore. She wanted to cry and collapse under the ground, away from all of this. She couldn't take being laughed of anymore. She jerked away from Tavington's hand and started walking away.

"Come to my quarters in half an hour." The Colonel's words stopped her in her tracks. Elizabeth wanted to run but that would give her nothing and she knew it. Instead of running, she turned around and nodded.

Exactly a half an hour later Elizabeth was standing before the door that led to the Colonel's bedroom. She didn't have a problem with finding it, as when she asked a servant about it, she got very clear directions. Actually, it seemed like that servant had been doing nothing else through all of her life than giving directions to this place.

As Elizabeth was standing before the door, she thought of what was waiting for her. She knew she had no choice and that there was no turning back for her. But somehow she couldn't gather the courage in herself to knock. Although she has been constantly thinking about this for a long time, she never was actually prepared for it.

She slid her palm over the smooth wood the door was made of and thought how thin the boarder between the present and the future was. Mere centimeters made of wood. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes for a moment and knocked.

"Come in." She heard Tavington's voice. In reality the time between the sound of her knuckles hitting the mahogany wood and the answer that came from behind it was short, counted in seconds. But for Elizabeth it seemed like she was trapped in eternity, the cold, dark place of eternity.

She opened the door and slowly walked into the elegant room. It has been a long time since she was in such a richly decorated place. Elizabeth remembered a time when her mother was still alive and their plantation was still standing. It might have not been as luxurious as this mansion but it had its elegance. For the last half a year she was forced to forget about her comfortable room with a big bed and settle for whatever she could get for herself and Christine. The scruffy room they now lived in was the best they got from the time they had lost their home. 'I was born on a wealthy plantation as the daughter of the owners, now I live in a rat-hole and at present I came for the first time in half a year to an elegant house only to become someone's whore.' Elizabeth thought. She wondered many times why life was so unfair to her. What did she do to deserve this? She didn't commit any crime worth such a punishment.

"Come here." Tavington told her. Elizabeth did as he said. She walked slowly through the bedroom, not paying much attention to her surroundings. But even if she wanted to, she wouldn't be able to do it too well, as the only source of light in the dark room was the fireplace in which flames jumped as if dancing a beautiful waltz.

But the practical lack of light wasn't the only reason Elizabeth barely paid attention to her surroundings. She just wasn't able to tear her eyes away from the Colonel. He was sitting in an armchair by the fireplace, but instead of the red uniform jacket Elizabeth saw him in a half an hour ago, he now had on an open shirt and his hair was untied. He looked now even more handsome than before. If that was possible, that is.

Elizabeth was perfectly aware that he was twice as old as she was, plus a few years, but that didn't change the fact that she thought of him as the most beautiful man she ever saw. None of the men more 'proper' for her age could compare with him.

Elizabeth snapped out of the trance she fell into as she understood that once again she was staring too long at him.

"What do you want me to do, Sir?" She asked, trying to break the silence in the room.

"I thought it was obvious." A smirk painted itself on his face. "Undress." He said, the tone of his voice silky in a strangely dangerous way. It made a shiver run down Elizabeth's back.

She started unbuttoning her dress as she knew, that she had to obey him. She knew that she couldn't think about what she was doing if she wanted to go through with this.

There wasn't much to take off, under the old dress she barely had any underwear, so it didn't take long till she was standing completely naked before him.

"Turn around." Elizabeth did so. She felt humiliated, but more by fait than by the situation.

Tavington had to admit, the girl had a nice body, long legs, fine skin. But still, she was far from perfect. She was horribly thin, almost unhealthily skinny. Her ribs were more than just a bit visible and her hipbones looked like they were going to cut through her skin and come out.

He got up from the armchair and walked behind her. Elizabeth felt his hand moving up her neck. A moment later her hair fell around her face as he pulled out the single pin that was holding them up and let it drop to the floor. Then, he abruptly turned her around and kissed her in a rough manor, pushing his tongue into her mouth, tasting her. She still smelled with the innocence all untouched women have. He would enjoy robbing her of that innocence.

Elizabeth knew that she couldn't do anything better than just give in and try to enjoy it. When he pulled away, she was left breathless.

It was her first kiss. Elizabeth a few times wondered how it would look like, but she never imagined it to be like this. That she would receive it not as a woman, but as a whore.

"Lay on the bed." He said, his voice emotionless but sensual at the same time. She did as he told her to and laid down on the old, carved, mahogany four-poster bed that stood by one of the walls. Tavington undressed himself and moved on the bed beside the girl. "Turn around." He told her. This surprised Elizabeth but she obeyed. She turned around and laid down on her stomach. "Not like that, my dear." She turned her head to him, a look of puzzlement on her face as she didn't know what he wanted from her. "Stand on your hands and knees." The Colonel said with a smirk. Once more she did as he said, knowing that she couldn't do anything else. Now she was standing on all fours like some animal.

"Will it hurt?" She asked. Elizabeth tried not to do that, but after hearing many times that the first time was painful, a sparkle of fear lit in her.

"It probably will." His voice was cold and emotionless. "And this way it'll probably hurt more than if you would be lying on your back."

"Then why can't I lie on my back?" Elizabeth asked, afraid even more.

"Because, I want to fuck you this way." His voice was hinted with annoyance. She tried to find a single emotion in his eyes, but there was none. "You're a whore, none of this is happening for your pleasure." After he said this, he brutally entered her, holding her hips in a bruising grip to stop her from moving. Elizabeth screamed, digging her fingers into the bed sheets as a wave of pain washed through her body. She felt like he had ripped her womanhood apart. Tears fell from her eyes.

Before she could adjust to him, he started pounding into her in a vicious rhythm. Elizabeth barely could stand in the uncomfortable position as he thrust into her time after time. She wanted to beg him to stop, to leave her, but she knew she couldn't. He was right, she was a whore and none of this was meant for her pleasure. All of his actions were meant only for his enjoyment, she could only try to take pleasure from them.

After what seemed an eternity for Elizabeth, the pain started subsiding and changing into something else, something she couldn't quite place. She tried to make herself think that she enjoyed it, but soon she saw that she didn't have to. The new feeling that awoke in her was more than pleasurable. She suddenly felt horribly hot and her breathing became heavier.

Elizabeth mindlessly bucked back against him to meet his brutal thrusts. Her mind went blank and she didn't know anymore what she was doing. She started moaning, first quietly and then louder and louder.

Tavington knew that she would act this way sooner or later. They all act the same way. Nomather what he does to women they always end up screaming in passion when taken by him. He could have any woman he wanted, he just had that way about him.

Not stopping thrusting into her, Tavington slid one of his hands up her neck and entwined his fingers into her hair. He then grabbed a handful of them and brutally yanked her up against him, making her yelp in pain as he did this.

Elizabeth grabbed his wrist, trying to free her hair as he brought her closer to him with his other hand and continued hammering into her. She never had experienced something like this before. She felt pleasure mixing in her body with pain in such a way that made her loose her senses. It was like every nerve in her was responding to him.

When her body wasn't able to take it anymore, she crossed the edge abruptly climaxing with a scream. It seemed like every muscle in her body contracted, especially the ones in her womanhood that now clamped around the Colonel's length, as if not wanting to let him out of her.

After this, Tavington thrust into her only a few times more and released himself inside her. When he finally let go of her hair, Elizabeth fell on the bed exhausted. She panted heavily and her heart raced as if it was going to jump out of her ribcage.

He took her a few times more that night, neither time less brutal than now. When Elizabeth finally fell asleep, she wasn't even able to think clearly. All she knew was that she was exhausted like never before in her life.

In the morning she awoke when she heard Tavington dressing himself. When she sat up she felt pain between her legs. It maybe wasn't excruciating, but it definitely was there. Everything that happened last night flashed before her eyes, reminding her of what she did.

"I see you're finally awake." The Colonel said blankly while tying his cravat. "And I see I haven't lost my touch." A cruel smirk appeared on his face as he saw her holding her lower stomach. He opened one of the drawers in a desk standing close to him and took something out of it. He walked up to the bed. "Here." He said without any emotion in his voice and threw a few coins unceremoniously to the girl. After that he turned around on his heel and returned to what he was doing previously.

"Thank you." Elizabeth said and picked up the coins from the bed, that were practically thrown in her face. First she felt ashamed but now she just felt like a used up rag.

"Are you still here?" The Colonel asked coldly after putting on his uniform jacket and turned in her direction. "Of course."

Elizabeth knew more than well what that meant. To make it worse, the way he said it was like another slap in her face. She quickly got out of bed, ignoring the pain between her legs and tried to get dressed as fast as possible. When she finished, she almost ran to the door. Her hand was already on the doorknob when the third slap came.

"What's your name, girl?" Again, his voice showing no emotion. He didn't even turn around to her. This time Elizabeth felt worse, than if he had truly slapped her.

"Elizabeth." She said quietly.

"Come here tonight again, Elizabeth. At 9 o'clock, let's say."

"Yes, Sir. Goodbye." She opened the door and left.

She ran back to her and her sister's room. When she finally reached it and went inside, she was happy that Christine wasn't there. Her sister wouldn't see her in this state.

Elizabeth locked the door and leaned back against it. She started crying, because of what happened, because of what she had done and because of how the Colonel had treated her. The first two blows were bad enough, when he had thrown the money in her face and when he had practically thrown her out. But the worst one was when he asked her about her name. He had taken her time after time last night and he didn't even care to know her name. She felt worse than a rag. She felt like trash, a piece of nameless trash.

Elizabeth laid down on the bed and fell asleep for the next few hours.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

**If you like it and want me to continue, PLEASE REVIEW. If you think it is crap review and tell me. Constructive criticism would be appreciated.**


	4. Joanna

**Disclaimer: **I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth, Christine and Joanna are mine.

**Ariana3000, Libertineangel, Demon, SassyBrunette, DeceptiveKindness** **- **Thank you for the reviews, I'm glad that you like it. I try to do my best.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

**_IV. Joanna_**

Elizabeth laid down on the bed and fell asleep for the next few hours. When she awoke, her sister was in the room, sitting on a chair on opposite to her.

"You don't look too good." Christine said, looking at her sister. Elizabeth turned her head to the frameless mirror that hung on the wall beside the bed. She truly didn't look good. Her hair was a mess, she had bags under her eyes, she was more pale than usual, her lips were swollen and an ugly bruise was visible on her arm, where the dress sleeve didn't reach.

"I'm fine." Elizabeth said blankly.

"I still don't know how you could do that." A look of annoyance mixed with exhaustion appeared on Elizabeth's face. "It's horrible. You willingly spoiled yourself. What mother would say? How could you?" Christine continued. "We promised her…"

"No! You promised her! I merely nodded to have peace! Besides, in a situation like this, she would understand! Anyone would understand!" Elizabeth cut off her sister's lecture, not wanting to hear it, especially now. "Anyone except you Christine. Can't you see that I did it to keep us alive? If I wouldn't, we'd starve to death."

"Earlier you found other ways to get money." Christine murmured, the look of a child that didn't get what it wanted on her face.

"Earlier not being caught for stealing was easier." Elizabeth spat.

"What? You stole the money we lived for earlier?" Christine asked outraged.

"Oh, wake up Christine. Where did you think I got it? People now are afraid of hiring people they're not sure of. They take everyone for a spy. You think I haven't tried to find work?"

"But I thought…"

"You thought what?" Christine didn't say anything. She just turned her head away.

When night fell and 9 o'clock came, Elizabeth went to the Colonel. In the morning he told her to come every night unless he told her otherwise, and so she did. She came to him every night and every morning when she returned to her room, Christine was waiting for her with another lecture about sins and such.

Not more than a few days after everything started, while going back to her room a woman with fiery red hair stopped her on the way. She had very sharp features and was undeniably attractive. The green dress she wore perfectly fitted to her hair and her pale complexion. Elizabeth recognized her, as one of the women that lived in the same house as she did.

"Hey, kid!" She called her. Elizabeth stopped and looked at the woman, she was standing just a few feet away. "Congratulations, you just became the Butcher's newest whore." She said with a nasty grin. Elizabeth turned away from the woman and started walking away. "Don't worry, a month, two at the most and he'll be through with you!" She shouted behind her.

As Elizabeth later found out, the woman's name was Joanna and she was 23. Some time ago, she had been the one to keep the Colonel 'company' at nights. It seemed that she had felt something for Tavington then. When he got bored of her and exchanged her for another girl, she instead of sulking about it started poisoning the other girl's life on every step. Now she continued to do this to every other girl that now took her ex-post. It was clear to Elizabeth, that what Joanna felt for the Colonel wasn't just something and it definitely didn't end. Only that it changed into jealousy, a very venomous type of jealousy.

Elizabeth truly felt sorry for her, but she wouldn't allow her to poison her life more than it already was just because she had heart problems. But since Elizabeth found that fighting Joanna was just leading her to spitting out more venom, she decided to plainly ignore her. She didn't have the strength for this.

As for her 'job', with time, Elizabeth started looking forward more to going to the Colonel's quarters than returning to her room. Christine was constantly criticizing her and what she did. Her lectures didn't have an end. At least he didn't lecture her. To tell the truth, he didn't give the slightest damn about her and he didn't hide it. At least he didn't lie to her and didn't give her false hopes.

First Elizabeth tried to be indifferent to the matter and she quietly asked herself how Joanna could fall in love in someone as cold as him. But as time passed, trying to be indifferent was getting harder and harder. When lying in bed with him although she was exhausted, she couldn't sleep. She just watched him as he slept with his back to her. As she did this, she was more and more tempted to touch him, to feel him. Still, she was too afraid that she would wake him. It took her a long time to gather her courage.

After she crossed that barrier, on the next night she couldn't stop herself from moving closer to him. On every night she waited till he fell asleep, and then moved closer, laying her head on his shoulder, only to be brutally pushed away in the morning when he awoke. Somehow, she started feeling safe with him, safe like she hasn't felt for a long time. On every day Elizabeth just waited for nightfall to go to him. When he left for a week, she couldn't deny that she missed him. She yearned for closeness, closeness and safety that she hasn't felt since she lost her home.

She started to understand Joanna's constant bitterness mixed with her behavior that made her remind a vicious snake, biting everyone on its way. But even though Elizabeth understood her, she couldn't stop hating her and her behavior. She was no saint and being forgiving never was her strong side.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

**Sorry for the short and boring chapter, but i****f you like it and want me to continue, PLEASE REVIEW. If you think it is crap review and tell me. Constructive criticism would be appreciated.**


	5. A Better Life

**SassyBrunette, VictorianStar - **Thank you for the reviews, I'm glad that you like it.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth and Christine are mine.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

_**V. A Better Life**_

"Elizabeth, I want to speak with you." Christine started one sunny afternoon, about six weeks after Elizabeth started her new 'profession'. She sat down beside her sister on the bed, a delicate smile on her face.

"What is it?" Elizabeth asked, tying a piece of a scarf around her thin wrist, to hide a few small bruises in the shape of a hand. Of course, it was the Colonel's work.

"Well, I still find far from proper what you're doing…"

"Christine, not this again, please." Elizabeth cut her sister off, expecting another lecture.

"Alright, but please let me finish. You're my sister, I want you to know something." Elizabeth nodded to show that she was listening. "You see, some time ago I went for a walk and I lost my way in the woods. I don't know how I would've found my way back if not for a young soldier that helped me. He was really nice and after we came back we often talked and went for walks…"

"So that's where you've been disappearing during the last month." Elizabeth laughed, causing Christine to blush.

"Well, we like each other very much…" By the way Christine was speaking, Elizabeth quickly got the picture, her little sister seemed to be in love. "We kissed for the first time today and he asked me to marry him."

"And what was your answer?" For Elizabeth this did seem a little quick, but at their present situation it would be better for her sister to get married and lead a better life than the one she already signed her own sentence on. Elizabeth was well aware that now no man would want her, not to marry. She was a whore. Now she remembered the fortune an old Gypsy woman told her about a year ago. Apparently, she told her the truth. Elizabeth would never marry and she had feelings for a true devil.

"I told him I have to talk to you first. So what should I do?" Christine asked shyly, her eyes begging Elizabeth to tell her to marry him.

"Do you love him?"

"Yes." Christine answered with sparkles in her eyes.

"Then why are you asking me? Marry him if that's what you want. Just mind yourself not to admit that your sister's a whore, or he might loose his enthusiasm." Elizabeth said blankly.

"He knows who you are. He saw you. He said that he loves me nomather what my family is." 'He's stupid, naïve or a really good man.' Elizabeth thought.

"If he doesn't mind, then better find him and say 'yes'. If you don't, he might get bored of waiting." Christine nodded and ran to the door. "Wait! What's his name?" Elizabeth asked before her sister left the room.

"Julian Parkerson." Christine answered, practically hanging on the doorknob.

"How old is he?"

"Seventeen. Can I go?" There was a clear sound of a hurry in her voice.

"Go." Elizabeth said and a second later she was already alone in the room. "Julian Parkerson." She repeated to herself. "Seventeen… That explains everything." Elizabeth somehow never felt an attraction to men her age. They shouldn't be even called men, they were still boys. Elizabeth felt inside that she couldn't love someone so young, she just didn't see it. She didn't know why, but so young men were completely unattractive to her. Truly, what could a boy like that do? Of course, he was considered by everyone as a man, but it was clear that it would take some time until he earned to be called that.

Her sister told her she had kissed with him today. Elizabeth was able to picture Christine with that boy, but somehow she couldn't picture herself with an equally young man, not to speak of going to bed with him. Could a boy like that have any actual experience, not to speak of talent? After these 6 weeks Elizabeth had to shamefully admit that now she saw sex as something very important, as it was a constant part of a relationship between a man and a woman. She was a whore and that – fortunately or unfortunately – made her see it. Tavington might've been brusque and brutal in bed, but he definitely was – Elizabeth still blushed scarlet when she thought of it – wonderful.

Besides, young men seemed to her so skinny, without muscles. The Colonel was like a Greek god, slim but well built, very well built. Every time she touched him, she felt hard muscles under her fingers. He was perfect in every way.

Elizabeth walked up to the window and looked at the beautiful day outside. She thought of her mother and her father. She wondered how he was. Elizabeth never met him, he fell off a horse and broke his neck a week after she and her sister were born.

It didn't take long for Christine and Julian to arrange their wedding. It was a small ceremony on which there was only Elizabeth and a few of Julian's friends. For Elizabeth her new brother-in-law was the type she would never come close to: he was naïve like her sister and skinny like a homeless cat. After the wedding ended, Elizabeth allowed her sister and her new husband to use the room she rented. She wouldn't need it during the night anyway, she'd be in Tavington's quarters. Going there was one of the not many things she now looked forward to.

A few days after the wedding Julian sent for his parents to come and meet his wife. They seemed to be nice people and they were willing to let his young wife live with them while he fought in the war. When Elizabeth watched them she thought that her sister fits to them. She decided not to join into the conversation they held. She would only ruin it, it was logical that they didn't dream of their daughter-in-law's sister being a whore. They surely knew who she was by now. Elizabeth thought it better to leave them together and let her sister start a new, better life, a life where there was no place for her. They were a nice picture together that represented a perfect life: a home with a loving family. Something Elizabeth would never taste.

Elizabeth sat on the bed in now only her room. Her sister would leave in a few minutes as she already packed everything that she had – there wasn't much of it. Tears fell down Elizabeth's cheeks as she gazed blankly at the wall. She would miss her sister, she hated her sometimes truly, but she would miss her. After all, all she did after their mother's death, she did to keep her sister alive. Now she was forcing Christine to go alone. It was for Christine's own good. Christine wanted to take her sister along, but Elizabeth knew that it couldn't end well. Some time would pass and Christine would forget about her. 'It will be better that way'. Elizabeth thought.

"Are you sure you won't come?" Christine stood in the doorway. "I wanted to ask you one more time before I leave."

"It's better this way. You should get to know your in-laws better. I'd only be a problem now. But I promise you, that when the war is over I'll come with your husband, remember that." Elizabeth said smiling. She knew it was a lie, but she had to persuade her sister to leave. Christine will forget in a few years, she'll have her own family by then.

"Alright, but promise to come."

"I promise. Now go."

"Goodbye." Christine said and walked out.

"Goodbye…"

Time passed slowly after that and Elizabeth couldn't get used to the silence in the room she lived in. It was so empty, so quiet. Now, more than ever before she waited for nightfall, just to go to the Colonel. She didn't want to be alone. At night she slept clutching to him like her life depended on it. Although he was a scoundrel, he was now the closest person Elizabeth had left.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

**If you like it and want me to continue, PLEASE REVIEW. If you think it is crap review and tell me. Constructive criticism would be appreciated.**


	6. Not All Stories Have Happy Endings

**VictorianStar, SassyBrunette, Ariana3000** - Thank you for the reviews. I'm glad that you like it.

**DeceptiveKindness **- Thank you for the review, I'm happy that you like it. The reader's wish is my command. Tavington you want, Tavington you get.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth and Christine are mine.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

_**VI. Not All Stories Have Happy Endings**_

„Come in." Elizabeth heard Tavington's voice from behind the door and entered the room. He was standing with his back to her, looking at some papers that lay on his desk.

"It's me, Sir." Elizabeth said quietly, waiting for him to tell her what to do.

"I know it's you. Only a whore comes to a man's bedroom at this hour." He took the papers from his desk and put them in one of the drawers. "Undress." He said blankly, still with his back to her. Elizabeth quickly undressed and unbound her hair from the simple ponytail she had. "Come here." When she walked up to him, he turned in her direction and leaned back against the desk. "Kneel down." He said coldly. After that Elizabeth knew what he wanted from her. She kneeled down before him and started undoing his breeches.

She took his length into her mouth and placed her hands on his hips for balance. Elizabeth started running her tongue over the bottom side of his shaft, moving her lips up and down his member that grew hard inside her mouth.

Tavington entwined his hand in her hair and thrust deeper inside her. At this moment Elizabeth lost any control that she had previously. He started thrusting into her mouth faster and faster until Elizabeth felt his grip on her hair tightening. A moment later he released himself inside her. When Elizabeth swallowed his seed, he let go of her hair and allowed her to move away from him.

"Get up." He said after a moment emotionlessly, Elizabeth stood up. The Colonel moved his hand to the back of her neck and pulled her closer. "Bend over the desk." His voice was cold and blank, as if nothing had happened. Elizabeth got used to this, after all, she meant nothing to him.

She bent over the desk, Tavington's hand still at the back of her neck. Then he thrust into her his still hard length and started hammering into her in a vicious rhythm. Elizabeth hissed when he did this, as though she'd been sleeping with him for almost two months now, her body still hadn't completely adjusted to his size that was anything but small. In the mornings she still felt pain between her legs - not as big as first, but it still was there. Besides, he never cared for any foreplay with her, so she was always dry when he entered her – another thing she had to get used too. It wasn't her choice, she had nothing to say about it, she was a whore.

After a moment Elizabeth started letting out moans and quiet screams that grew louder with every second. She could feel her orgasm building up in her as he pounded into her harder and faster. She thought that her body would explode into a million pieces when he moved inside her.

Elizabeth screamed one last time as she climaxed, her voice more belonging to an animal than a human being. She dug her nails into the desk as she felt wave after wave of pleasure flowing through her body. Elizabeth felt the Colonel thrusting into her a few more times and then his hot seed shooting deep inside her. She knew that she was acting like a harlot, but then she remembered that she was one after all.

All nights looked like this for Elizabeth. She waited for them to come nomather how they were as during the day, she was forced to face loneliness in her empty room.

As on one evening she was going to the Colonel, she heard voices coming from his bedroom. One was undoubtedly Tavington's, the other one belonged to a woman. Elizabeth knew that voice, it seemed to belong to Joanna. She walked closer to the door to the Colonel's bedroom that was ajar and looked inside. She was right, it was Joanna and she seemed to be… crying. From the place she was standing in now, Elizabeth could partly hear what they were saying.

"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." Tavington said, a cruel smirk on his face. Joanna said something through her tears, but Elizabeth wasn't able to make out what it was. Then she saw Tavington slapping Joanna so hard that it sent her on the floor with a loud thud. "Get up and get out." His voice was cold and emotionless. Joanna again said something that Elizabeth wasn't able to hear and grabbed the Colonel by his ankle, but he only kicked her hand away. "Get out or I'll throw you out." He said almost causally, his voice dangerously calm.

Then Elizabeth saw him grabbing Joanna by her hair and brutally yanking her up. When she saw him dragging her towards the door, Elizabeth moved away from it so he wouldn't see her. A second after Elizabeth moved behind the door, Tavington threw Joanna on the corridor's floor and slammed the door shut.

Joanna would've looked dead if not for the fact that her body was trembling from her crying. Elizabeth and Joanna never got along, but now she pitied her too much to just walk away.

Elizabeth kneeled beside Joanna's crying form.

"Are you alright?" Elizabeth knew it was a stupid question, but she couldn't think of anything else to say. She always saw Joanna as a very strong person, she somehow wasn't able to imagine her crying and now she didn't know what to think after what she witnessed. Elizabeth managed to turn Joanna around, so she wouldn't lie with her face on the floor. Her eyes were red from the tears and her lip was bleeding – surely after the Colonel had hit her. "Calm down, everything will be alright." Elizabeth said, trying to comfort her.

"What can you know?" Joanna cried out.

"Shhh, or they'll throw us out of here. Calm down, everything will be alright." This made Joanna laugh through her tears.

"If you say that, then you know shit."

"Then tell me what I don't know. But not here." Elizabeth said and helped Joanna to get up.

She somehow managed to get her to the house they lived in. Elizabeth brought the woman to the room she once shared with Christine, instead of Joanna's. She thought that Joanna needed rest and with her room mate it would be the last thing she would get. Since Christine left, Elizabeth lived alone.

"What happened?" Elizabeth asked after lying Joanna on the bed. To Elizabeth's surprise Joanna answered.

"I'm pregnant." She said quietly. Elizabeth didn't know what to say. She knew that Joanna must've thought it to be Tavington's. But how could she be sure? Joanna turned her head and looked at Elizabeth. "It's his child, I'm sure of it. He's the only man I had sex with since my last monthly." She answered as if she read in Elizabeth's thoughts.

"But when? At night…" Elizabeth started but Joanna cut her off.

"Dear Elizabeth, you should know that night isn't the only time to have sex." Joanna tried to laugh, but it was easy to see the sadness beneath her every word. She lied back down on the bed. "I'm not in such a hopeless situation like you, Elizabeth. I have enough money saved around to not have to go to bed with someone every night." Joanna's voice more reminded quiet cries than words. "It was over a month ago. I was about a week after my monthly and since it I didn't sleep with anyone…

Joanna stepped out on the riverbank from the water after taking a bath, not noticing the person that was watching her.

"I see nothing has changed, Joanna." Joanna turned her head in the direction, from which came a voice more than familiar to her. It was Tavington, she would recognize his voice anywhere. Joanna grinned seductively when she saw, that the Colonel's gaze was set on her naked body and his trademark smirk was painted on his lips.

"No, it hasn't." She said with a smile, standing up straight before him, no intention of covering herself up. "Is there something that you miss, since you came here?"

"My dear Joanna, you should have learned by now that I never miss." He said as she walked up closer to him. "But it never hurts to refresh memories, does it?"

"No, it doesn't." Joanna said while wrapping one wet hand around his neck and sliding the other down his abdomen. "How about we refresh our memories, Colonel?" She asked as she pressed her palm against his crotch. Tavington only flashed that smirk of his at her.

Suddenly he pushed her against a tree he was standing beside and kissed her roughly, pushing his tongue into her mouth. Joanna moaned with pleasure as he started kissing her collarbone. When he did that, she managed to slip her hand downwards his body and started massaging his length through the rough fabric of his breeches.

Joanna wanted this man during every second of her life. She loved him since she met him. She loved him as much as she had lusted for him and him she wanted more than anything in her life. He was always cold to her, but she didn't expect him to be different. But still, somewhere deep in her heart, she dreamed that he would see more in her than just a whore. She wasn't stupid and neither naïve, but dreams don't cost anything.

She groaned loudly when Tavington lifted her up and crushed her harder against the tree. He held her up with one hand as he opened his breeches with the other. A moment later he thrust himself into her moist entrance and she automatically wrapped her legs around his hips. Joanna didn't need a long foreplay with this man. Just being close to him made wild thoughts come to her head, causing her to moisten within moments.

When he entered her, Joanna thought she died and went straight to 7th Heaven. It has been a long, long time since she last had sex with him, causing her to yearn for him even more. He was like water on a desert for her, no, that would be wrongly put. He was like a drug to her, a dangerous drug, more addictive and hazardous than even opium.

Before another loud moan escaped Joanna's lips, Tavington covered her mouth with his hand to keep her quiet. If she continued to do this, she would bring the entire camp here with her screams.

Joanna kept moaning into his hand as he thrust into her time after time, bringing her closer to climax with every movement. Suddenly, he let go of her mouth and kissed her brutally, swallowing her moans. He pulled away for a second, biting her lip on the way and kissed her again. That little thing pushed Joanna into pure ecstasy. She screamed into his mouth as she peaked and squeezed her legs around him so hard, that she made it almost impossible for him to breathe. Tavington pulled away from her and slapped her in the face, causing her to loosen her legs. After that he kissed her roughly once more and thrust into her a few more times before releasing himself inside her.

A moment later, he pulled out of her and unceremoniously let her slide down the tree trunk. She panted on the ground as she looked at him. He was buttoning up his breeches, his 'scoundrelish' smirk on his face.

"It's nice to remember things, isn't it?" He said smirking and walked away, leaving her alone.

"How did you…" Elizabeth started but was once again cut off by Joanna.

"How did I become a whore or how did I meet him?" She asked.

"Both actually." Elizabeth replied.

"I'm an orphan." Joanna said. "No one adopted me, maybe because I was too rude to everyone. When I was too old to stay at the orphanage in Charlestown, they threw me out on the street and I didn't have much of a choice on what to do. It was become a whore or starve on the street. When the war started and Fort Carolina was built, I decided like many others to move in close of it." Joanna sighed sadly. "I was forced to grow up very early, Elizabeth. However, my dreams still lived in me. They lived in the deepest, darkest corners of my mind and heart. They weren't anything special, just the dreams of every orphaned girl." Joanna continued. Elizabeth listened to her words as she felt, that the woman wanted to spill what was in her. "When I was a child, I dreamed that one day I'll meet a Prince Charming and I'll fall in love with him and everything will have a beautiful end. When I met Tavington, I thought I found my Prince. He was so beautiful, like a half-god." Joanna laughed sadly as tears started falling from her eyes again. "Instead in a Prince Charming, I fell in love in a bastard with a beautiful face. I knew he didn't care about me, but somewhere deep inside, I hoped that maybe… I still love him. I love him with all my heart." Elizabeth started changing her mind about Joanna, she wasn't as venomous as she seemed, it was life that made her like this. Now as she lay on Elizabeth's bed, she wasn't the snake she thought her to be. She looked like a little, scared girl that life gave a solid kick. "When I found out that I'm pregnant, I hoped that maybe he would care. I went to him. I told him that I was carrying his child. He said that he doubted that it was his and even if it was… He said that he didn't give a damn." Joanna started shivering from her tears. "I told him that he was a bastard and he hit me. I landed on the floor. I tried to stop him. I told him that I love him and I'll do anything for him… His eyes were so cold, so emotionless, so… dead. He kicked me away, like a dirty rag and told me to get out. When I didn't get up he grabbed my hair and threw me out." She continued sobbing as she spoke. "He probably was right. I'm trash."

"You're not trash. Life forced you to live like this, it wasn't your fault." Elizabeth said and sat down beside the crying redhead.

"I am trash. I'm a whore. No man would want me. He was right, he was right in everything he said." Joanna curled up into a ball on the bed and continued weeping.

_**XoXoXoX**_

When later Elizabeth went to the Colonel, she couldn't forget what Joanna had told her.

Tavington on that night was even more brutal than usual. In the morning Elizabeth left his quarters with more bruises than she got for the last week.

When she came back to her room in the morning, she found Joanna still sleeping. At least that's what she thought at first. As she came closer, she saw that the woman wasn't breathing. Elizabeth brought her hand to her neck. No pulse. She was dead. She was dead, but she looked like she was sleeping. She looked so natural, so alive.

Elizabeth noticed that she was holding something in her hand, a small vile. Then she saw that the pillow under Joanna's head was a bit wet. 'She must've been crying longer than I thought.' Elizabeth thought. Then she understood everything. Before leaving the room to inform someone to take the body away, she took the vile out of Joanna's hand. She didn't know if the woman believed in God, but she knew that if they found the vile, even a priest wouldn't come to say anything before burying her. Elizabeth knew they wouldn't care to check the cause of death, she was a prostitute, they wouldn't care nor spare the time.

Elizabeth understood why Joanna did it. She just couldn't live without him. There weren't any other reasons, as that one was enough for her. When Joanna died, Elizabeth understood her own feelings. Unfortunately for her. She remembered the fortune given to her by the Gypsy woman.

"_Do you know in who I'll fall in love with?" The old woman raised her head and looked straight into Elizabeth's eyes. _

"_The Devil."_

Yes, she had fallen in love in the Devil himself.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

**If you like it and want me to continue, PLEASE REVIEW. If you think it is crap review and tell me. Constructive criticism would be appreciated.**


	7. All That You Left In Me

**Ariana3000 - **Thank you for the review, I'm glad that you like it.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own "The Patriot", Elizabeth and Christine are mine.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

_**VII. All That You Left In Me**_

Elizabeth knew that she loved Tavington, but she also knew that she couldn't tell him. It would be pointless, he would probably throw her out on the corridor like he did with Joanna. That man had no feelings, but it didn't change the fact that Elizabeth loved him. She didn't want to think about that he would get rid of her. She didn't think of tomorrow, she only thought of today, the time she had with him.

But it didn't last long. It ended about a week after Joanna's death, on one early autumn morning. Elizabeth was already at the door when Tavington stopped her.

"Elizabeth, don't come tonight. Don't come anymore at all, for that matter." He said, standing with his back to her, dressing himself, his voice cold and casual. Elizabeth knew what this meant. It was the end. He would find himself another girl to entertain him at night. And what would Elizabeth do? Would she become as bitter like Joanna and take out everything on the girl that will take her place? She didn't know, but she didn't promise herself that she wouldn't. She loved him and love changes people, for better or worse ones. It depends how they are treated by it.

"Yes, Sir." Elizabeth replied and walked out of the room. She knew that she was now truly alone. When she came back to her room, tears fell from her eyes. There won't be anybody she could go to now. Her sister had a new life without her and it was better that way. Her mother was dead and most probably it was Tavington that had killed her and burned Elizabeth's plantation down. She only never wanted to think about it. He was a bastard, but she loved him.

Elizabeth knew, that she would forget her pride and beg at his feet, if he would only take her back. But she knew it was useless. He would throw her out like trash, like he did with Joanna. And what would she do? Steal a vile of poison like Joanna did, drink it and cry herself to an eternal sleep? No, at least not yet.

She wouldn't sell herself to anyone else, she wouldn't be able to. She had some money left as with Christine gone she didn't spend so much. Also, after they took Joanna's body, she found a money bag under one of the pillows. She knew that Joanna left it there. On purpose or not, Elizabeth decided to keep the money, since she knew that Joanna had nobody close that might need it more. Elizabeth would survive, for some time at least.

During the next days she didn't eat much as she barely could force herself to swallow anything. Her throat was tied in a knot.

The days were getting shorter and colder, mist covered the land more and more often. It was the beginning of October. On one cold, foggy morning Elizabeth went out for a walk. She wanted to get some fresh air, but she didn't want to see anyone and at this hour most were still asleep.

Elizabeth didn't know for how long she walked and didn't care for that matter. She was on some meadow, when she saw something lying by a lonely tree. Her barely still alive curiosity made her go and get a closer look. It was a middle-sized dog, that lay curled up into a ball under the tree. It was very skinny, dirty and had a piece of rope around its neck. Elizabeth took pity on the animal, it reminded her too much herself to care about being bitten.

She kneeled beside the animal and gently petted it on the head. The dog woke up immediately, but it only let out a silent squeal. There was fear in the animal's eyes, but it didn't move.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you." The dog gently whacked the end of its tail, not having strength to do more. Elizabeth let out a sad laugh. "You look worse than I do." She didn't want to leave the animal to its own fate. Elizabeth somehow felt like she was looking at herself when looking at the dog. She just couldn't leave it. It seemed a bit like a desperate try to not be alone. Elizabeth was sick of being locked up in those 4 walls with only herself. "Will you let me carry you?" The animal didn't protest when Elizabeth picked it up. The dog was very light although his size – her size as Elizabeth found out later.

She managed to slip into the house with the dog unnoticed. Fortunately the residents were either still asleep or haven't returned yet from their 'job'.

Elizabeth laid the dog on the bed and cut the piece of rope off her neck.

She named the dog Pearl. As Elizabeth noticed after washing the dog, it had many grey hairs on her head and body, clearly stating that she was old. Pearl turned out to be not only old, but almost completely blind. Elizabeth didn't know how she managed to survive this way by herself. It didn't take much time, two days, for Elizabeth to get emotionally tied to the dog. She decided that if Pearl had not much life left before her, she would make that time the best for her as she could. After all, Pearl was now the only one she had left. Elizabeth didn't think of Pearl as an animal, she was like family to her and she loved it like family. The last one of her family she had left.

She slept with the dog in bed under the covers. She didn't want Pearl to be cold since she didn't have to be. She wasn't homeless anymore. Pearl followed Elizabeth everywhere she could and Elizabeth spent almost every minute with her, so the poor animal wouldn't feel lonely. Elizabeth knew the feel of loneliness too well, and she didn't want Pearl to suffer it if she didn't have to.

Unfortunately, the dog didn't have much time left as Elizabeth feared. Not much more than a month after Elizabeth found her, Pearl died on her hands. Elizabeth cried harder than ever before in her life. She lost the only true friend she ever had. The only person in her life, that returned the trust and love given to him.

It was still dark when on the next morning Elizabeth buried Pearl under the same tree where she had found her. She took a knife and carved out her name and date of death on tree beneath a simple cross, also carved out on the trunk. Elizabeth didn't care what someone would think if they knew or what blasphemy she committed in the eyes of the church. This dog gave her more than anyone else in her life and deserved more than anyone else she ever met. She won't just bury it like a piece of trash and forget. Pearl didn't deserve that. She was the only one that didn't reject Elizabeth in any way. Her mother and she never were close, her sister constantly criticized her and the man she loved emotionlessly told her to go and not come back. This dog was the only one that Elizabeth had feelings for and wasn't rejected by.

After burying Pearl, Elizabeth went further in the direction she was walking in on the day she found the dog. She just walked straight, not paying attention to anything, not thinking about anything.

It was the beginning of dawn when Elizabeth reached a meadow that was somehow familiar to her. Everything was still covered in morning mist, that made it hard for Elizabeth to see where she was. She continued to walk further, until she understood what this place was. It was the very same meadow, where over a year back she and her friends met the Gypsy woman that told Elizabeth her future. The girl let out a sad laugh at the thought, how right the Gypsy woman was.

Elizabeth knew, that if she was here now, the remains of her parents' plantation must be somewhere close. She looked around, trying to remember in which direction to walk. Elizabeth looked at the sun rising in the east and remembered that her plantation was also build with its front east. She started walking west and not much later she was standing before the ruins of what once was her home.

Only the stone part of the house was left, except for a few burned boards that didn't rot. The place reminded Elizabeth of a cemetery, the cemetery of her life. The mist that surrounded it and the trees around that blocked much of the rays of the rising sun didn't make it better. It was dead quiet, not even a bird singing.

Elizabeth wondered why she hadn't died with her mother on the day, when the plantation was burned. The time that she went through after it, gave her nothing but suffering. True, she had tasted love, but more of love's bitterness than happiness. Why did she live then? Her life turned to ashes along with this house on the day it burned. She turned away from her burned home.

Suddenly she remembered what her grandfather had once told her, in the library of her destroyed home.

"Even if you loose everything, you can always try to rebuild what you've lost." He told her, while holding her on his lap. She was 10, maybe 11 years old then. "Most people give up when they loose something, because they think they won't be able to get it back. But how can they know that if they don't try? Remember, nomather what will happen, the sun always rises and with it comes another day."

The sun finally had risen, embracing the ruins of Elizabeth's home in its autumn light.

Elizabeth turned around and looked at the burned house when it was no longer covered by a half-darkness.

_**The End**_

_Grey skies above fields of ash  
Cold winds blowing through endless deserts  
I hope for a ray of light  
But none can breech the cloudy wall of led  
I hope for a drop of water  
But none falls from the rainless storms,  
That march through over and over again  
That is all you left in me  
Thunder echoing over horizons of dry earth  
That is all you left in me  
Grey skies above fields of ash_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

**Well, that was it. If you liked it PLEASE REVIEW, if you thought it was crap, review and tell me. I'm working on a sequel to this story. For those that are wondering Tavington and Elizabeth would meet again in the sequel.** **But if the sequel will be posted depends on the number of reviews for this chapter and story from now. Constructive criticism would be appreciated.**


End file.
